Huang Hao
Huang Hao (onyomi: Kō Kō) is a eunuch who infamously served Liu Shan in court as his trusted advisor. He is often considered to be one of the major contributing factors that led to Shu's fall. Contents http://koei.wikia.com/wiki/Huang_Hao# hide#Role in Games #Historical Information #Romance of the Three Kingdoms #Gallery Role in GamesEdit The newer Dynasty Warriors titles includes him in battles after Liu Shan's enthronement. During Shu's last stand at Chengdu, he personally leads an archer unit to halt Sima Zhao's forces . In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, Huang Hao tends to have the worst overall stats out of all the characters. The latest title omits his character entirely, save for a minor mention within Liu Shan's profile. Historical InformationEdit Huang Hao entered Liu Shan's service sometime in the mid to late 220s, primarily due to Liu Shan's favoritism for him. He was known for showering Liu Shan the sweetest words of praise as a means of being noticed, a trait which many would later find irritating and degrading. He was prevented from rising into his inner circle at first because Chancellor Dong Yun disapproved. He distrusted Huang Hao, leading to negative relations between the two politicians. After Dong Yun's death to illness, Liu Shan faithfully followed Chancellor Chen Zhi's advice. Chen Zhi personally abhorred Huang Hao and wanted him banished or executed; the emperor's affinity for Huang Hao stayed his hand. It was only after Chen Zhi's death in 258 that Huang Hao was pushed into the spotlight for Liu Shan, being the dominate member of the emperor's inner circle. He and his cohorts had no faith in Jiang Wei and Yan Yu's plans to attack Wei, thus they pressed for Liu Shan to not be supportive. Huang Hao personally held a deep hatred for Jiang Wei and did everything within his power to ensure that he would not be favorable to the emperor. Though he was loved by Liu Shan, many historical records –even from those outside Shu– remark that Huang Hao was a person despised by many for his selfish pettiness. The other eunuchs may have supported his plans to stop the campaigns against Wei, but not even they could tolerate his character. Liu Shan's unfaltering trust for Huang Hao discouraged any protest against him. Those who were brave enough to try were more or less crushed by Huang Hao's manipulation. As Huang Hao squandered the riches of Shu to spoil Liu Shan, nothing was able to proceed without his approval and the political realm suffered immensely. When Jiang Wei requested for reinforcements against Wei in 263, Huang Hao resented the message. He was able to convince Liu Shan to do the same by stating that an ill-fated divination was held. If the emperor agreed to Jiang Wei's request, the results would be catastrophic for Shu. As Wei's army marched closer towards Chengdu, Shu's forces were gravely outmanned and outmaneuvered. Before his demise, Zhuge Shao famously reflected, "This never would've happened if someone had killed Huang Hao sooner. Something has to be done about him." After Shu's fall, Deng Ai considered employing him for Wei. However, after he was informed of Huang Hao's morbid and manipulative character, he instead issued an order for the politician's arrest and execution. Huang Hao bribed the general's attendants and was able to escape from Chengdu unharmed. The entire treasury of Shu was reduced to a mere 2,000 catty by this time. Romance of the Three KingdomsEdit Sima Zhao had him executed after Shu surrendered to Wei in the novel. Huang Hao was a eunuch serving Liu Shan, second and last emperor of the Kingdom of Shu during the Three Kingdoms era in ancient China. Highly favoured by Liu Shan, he was commonly blamed for misguiding the latter into surrendering to the Kingdom of Wei and considered one of the most corrupt and worthless officials in the Three Kingdoms era along with Cen Hun. Huang Hao entered the service of Liu Shan as a eunuch some time in the 220s. According to the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms, Huang Hao was favoured by Liu Shan as he was shrewd and full of flattering words. While the chief attendant to the emperor Dong Yun was still alive, he often advised Liu Shan on the danger of flattery on one hand, and admonished Huang Hao for misguiding the young emperor on the other. After Dong Yun died in 246, he was replaced by Chen Qi (Shu Han), who collaborated with Huang Hao to influence court affairs. Henceforth Huang Hao became increasingly powerful. Even the senior ministers such as Zhuge Zhan and Dong Jue could do nothing to remove him. The General-in-Chief, Jiang Wei, once advised Liu Shan to execute Huang Hao since Huang easily fell for a ruse by Wei's Sima Yi to spread false rumours about Jiang wanting to rebel and told the emperor, which resulted in Jiang retreating back into the capital despite the initial victories against Sima Yi. However the emperor denied the request, saying that the eunuch was but a servant who ran errands. Fearing retaliation, Jiang Wei then left the capital of Chengdu to garrison troops at Tazhong (沓中, northwest of present day Zhouqu County, Gansu). As he had not achieved any significant gain over the Kingdom of Wei for years, Jiang Wei was also almost replaced by the another general Yan Yu (閻宇), at the suggestion of Zhuge Zhan and Huang Hao, who was close friends with Huang. In 263, Jiang Wei wrote to Liu Shan, warning about the mustering of Wei troops underZhong Hui near the border. However, Huang Hao, who believed in witchery, had a witch predict the future and told Liu Shan that the enemy would take ages to arrive as the capitalChengdu was surrounded by a perfect natural barrier of mountains and valleys. Liu Shan then neglected Jiang Wei's defence plans which ultimately resulted in the capture of Chengdu by Deng Ai's forces. After Liu surrendered, Huang Hao was captured by Deng who intended to execute the treacherous man. However, Huang Hao managed to bribe those close to Deng Ai and extricate himself. His fate henceforth is unknown. Category:Characters Category:Local Thugs